2 weeks Ago By Mary Murphy
ST. PAUL — Gov. Tim Walz issued a new writ on Wednesday, Feb.
5, to schedule a special election in March for House seat 40B in Roseville. The writ sets a new date of March 11 for the special election which was originally scheduled for Jan. 28, but after Republicans filed suit claiming Walz called the special election too quickly, the Roseville seat will be vacant for a bit longer.
ADVERTISEMENT Roseville’s House seat became vacant after a Ramsey County judge ruled that former DFL Rep.-elect Curtis Johnson did not reside in Roseville six months prior to his election in November. The Ramsey County ruling on Dec.
20 is also what triggered Republicans gaining a temporary 67-66 majority over Democrats. Republicans then began arguing a power-sharing agreement previously discussed when November’s general election landed the Minnesota House in a 67-67 tie is no longer necessary. Democrats have since been boycotting the first three weeks of the session.
Among other demands, Democrats have said without a power-sharing agreement, given the Roseville seat is likely to return the House to a tie, they may not stop their boycott until the special election in March. The candidates previously filed for House seat 40B when the election was set for Jan. 28 were DFL candidate David Gottfried and Republican candidate Paul Wikstrom.
New candidates have until Feb. 11 to file for candidacy. Wikstrom has lived in Roseville for 28 years and works in engineering and management.
Some of his top priorities are affordability, public safety and public education, according to his campaign website. DFL candidate Gottfried lives in Shoreview and works as a pro-bono specialist at a law firm. Some of his top priorities are education, environment and gun control, according to his campaign website.
“I am thrilled that this campaign is back in action,” Gottfried said in a Wednesday statement. “We’ve been ready to move forward full-steam ahead. My priorities are addressing the needs of working families in Roseville and Shoreview.
I’m ready to hit the ground running at the Capitol so we can lower the cost of prescription drugs and make a smart plan to protect our shared futures in Minnesota.” ADVERTISEMENT At the time of publication, Wikstrom had not yet replied to a request for comment..
